Motion section arguing that an adolescent client’s history of exposure to trauma is a factor in the voluntariness analysis that should lead to suppression of a confession
This draft motion section relies on psychological and neuroscientific research to argue that young people who have been exposed to trauma behave differently when interrogated and are more likely to give false, unreliable, and involuntary confessions such that past exposure to trauma should be an important factor in the voluntariness analysis. Pages 2-3: Youth with […]
Draft of sentencing mitigation memorandum section explaining that exposure to violence makes youth more likely to a carry a gun out of fear
This draft sentencing argument is one-page long and relies on three studies to demonstrate that when young people (including people up to age 24) are exposed to violence (gun-related or not), it substantially increases the likelihood that they will later carry guns because they are afraid and feel they need the gun for self-protection and […]
Amicus Brief – Interrogation Techniques Contributing to False Confessions
Filed by the American Psychological Association, this brief overviews specific interrogation techniques (maximization, minimization, and sleep deprivation) that contribute to false confessions, as well as research showing that young people are particularly likely to falsely confess.
Amicus brief in support of admitting expert testimony on the science of false memories in a child sexual abuse prosecution
Pgs. 7-8 – summarize scientific research describing how people create entirely false memories, a study of false memory creation, and a list of false memory risk factors, particularly for children. Pgs. 9-10 – explain how interview techniques can create false memories in children, even false memories that do not seem to directly relate to the […]
Susceptibility of Adolescents to Influence
p. 18 – 23 incorporate research about the high susceptibility of adolescents to persuasion, especially by police. Amici argues that this makes adolescents more likely than adults to give false information to authority figures. Includes research on how adolescents respond to authority under stress.
Sentencing Memorandum for Elderly Client Convicted of Possession of Child Pornography
This sentencing memorandum marshals empirical research about the typical profile and risk assessment of someone convicted of possessing child pornography, along with research related to the client’s age and the impact of incarceration on recidivism/deterrence, to argue that the client is not dangerous or likely to reoffend. These arguments could also be used pretrial in […]
